Candra Malik, Batang (Central Java) – A day after an Indonesian judge warned that frivolous cases should never end up clogging the courts, the Batang District Court sentenced Manisih, 39, and her niece, Sri Suratmi, 25, to a 24-day jail term for stealing the remnants of a kapok harvest – worth just Rp 12,000 ($1.30) – from a field owned by PT Segayung, a cotton producer in Central Java.

Following Tuesday's verdict, Manisih insisted that neither she nor her niece had ever stolen anything, arguing that she was only picking the remnants of a kapok harvest to sell because they were poor and needed to make ends meet. Presiding Judge Tirolian Nainggolan said on Tuesday that poverty was no justification for the "crime" committed.

Both residents of Kenconorejo village in Batang, about 200 kilometers from the provincial capital of Semarang, Manisih and Sri Suratmi were arrested on Nov. 2 last year for picking 14 kilograms of the harvest remnants and transferred to the Rowobelong Penitentiary in Central Java pending their trial.

They therefore do not have to actually serve the 24-day sentence as they were detained at the penitentiary during the course of their trial. However, they did still weep, because they were now "legally branded as thieves."

"The panel of judges categorizes the defendants' deed as stealing, because of the green kapok pods found in the sack they carried. This means the defendants were not only picking up harvest leftovers, but were also taking kapok pods not yet ready for harvest," Tiroloan said.

Villagers at Kenconorejo, however, still prepared a thanksgiving feast to welcome Manisih and Sri, in celebration of their "acquittal."

"Though their detention time offset the prison sentence, we did not think Manisih and Sri would be found guilty. We are disappointed the court system has not sided with the common people," a villager said.

Nasi tumpeng, a traditional cone-shaped yellow rice dish for special occasions, was served to "celebrate the sentencing."

Manisih and Sri said they needed time to consider whether they would lodge an appeal because they felt "abused."

Stealing carries a maximum punishment of 7 years in prison, according to the Criminal Code.

Batang Police deputy chief Comr. Susongko said that police had seized three-meter long poles, a rope and a sickle from the alleged thieves. The evidence, police said, corroborated the suspicion that the women had not been picking up the remnants of the kapok harvest, but stealing pods from the tree.

The suspects initially included not only Sri Suratmi, but also Manisih's children, Rusnanto, 12, and Juwono, 16.

Effendi, a merchant who repeatedly bought kapok fiber from PT Segayung,said he had repeatedly warned Manisih and Sri, against picking up the remnants, but to no avail.

Leli Meilinda, chief of prosecution at Batang District Attorney's Office, said she believed Manisih's case to be a general crime that should not be exaggerated.

Kapok is a tree with large seed pods, the fibers of which are used for upholstery and insulation.

Manisih's court verdict comes a day after a nine-year-old boy who was facing criminal charges for stinging a classmate with a bee was acquitted by the Surabaya District Court on Monday, with presiding judge Sutriadi Yahya stating on the record that such a case should have been settled out of court and should have never made it to trial.